Dutch Police May Go Undercover as Jews to Thwart Attacks

In an attempt to reverse a worrying trend of anti-Semitic hate crimes in the Netherlands, Dutch police may begin going undercover as Jews.

By Malkah Fleisher

First Publish: 6/23/2010, 9:45 PM / Last Update: 6/23/2010, 9:32 PM

In an attempt to reverse a worrying trend of anti-Semitic hate crimes in the Netherlands, Dutch police may begin going undercover as Jews.

Amsterdam and Rotterdam have become hotbeds of anti-Semitic activity, with members of the Jewish communities there being verbally attacked, bombarded with anti-Semitic e-mail, and confronted with Hitler salutes. The majority of the attacks are being committed by Muslim immigrants to Holland. There are almost 1 million Muslims living in Holland today.

If Dutch police dress as Jews in order to protect them, it will not be their first time going "undercover" in order to catch bigots and haters. Dutch officers have previously gone undercover as homosexuals in order to thwart anti-gay violence.

A 2007 Haaretz article noted a 64% upsurge in anti-Semitic attacks since 2005. In January 2009, during Operation Cast Lead, in which Israel entered Gaza to defend citizens in its south from missile attacks, attacks on Dutch Jews soared, with almost as many targeted attacks being recorded during that month as in all of 2008. Dutch online social networking sites have also proved to be breeding grounds for anti-Semitism, to the extent that the Reformed Political Party in the Dutch parliament, a religious Calvinist party, requested that the Justice Minister review the issue and work to provide solutions.

Now in 2010, Radio Netherlands Worldwide reports that the Jews have taken to hiding their kippahs (skullcaps) in public.

However, an economically conservative political party with a mission to push back against liberal immigration policies and the growing influence of Islam in Holland - the Party for Freedom, headed by well-known politician Geert Wilders - experienced a major boost in recent elections, and is now Holland's third largest party in parliament.

Geert Wilders has been an outspoken advocate for Israel, publicly warning that the fate of Jerusalem will determine the fates of Athens and Rome, and calling on the international community to recognize Jordan as a Palestinian state. Wilders also supports a ban on veils and on the building of additional mosques in Holland.